Christmas Eve Edition | Weekly Roundup - December 24, 2017

Curated list of articles on dividend growth investing, financial independence, freedom and passive income
Happy Weekend!  Check out what's been going on in my world and some of the best articles from around the blogosphere.

Well, it's Christmas time again.  I love this time of year because despite the hustle and bustle it seems like things just kind of slow down.  The cold, well cooler, days/nights are ideal to just sit around with your loved ones.  Unfortunately, I won't be spending Christmas day with my family, but you can rest assured that I'll be home the first chance I get.
It's been yet another year of change for us once I went back to work in February.  I had a great time being a stay at home dad, but the time had come for me to get back to work.  I might be biased a bit but our daughter is awesome.  It's really amazing to see her personality develop and change and judging by the smile that's almost always on her face (except when we tell her no and then it's all drama queen with pout faces and fake cries) I'd say she's a very happy little girl.

This year even brought snow to our neck of the woods.  We usually get snow about every 7-10 years or so and this is honestly the most that I can remember ever getting.  There was about 3/4-1" of accumulation at our house and my family that lives near College Station got 5-6".  Around Houston that just doesn't happen.

I completely missed this with everything going on but November also saw Passive Income Pursuit turn 6 years old.  I had no idea where this whole blogging thing would take me, financially not very far, but it's great getting to interact with the rest of the community because in my every day life there just aren't that many people interested in investing.  I didn't do as much writing as I'd have liked to in 2017, but I'm getting back into a groove and can hopefully settle into a schedule with 2018 on deck.

I do need to pick everyone's brains for a quick question.  So obviously, we have a daughter.  We haven't started any college fund yet (I know...slacking), but I was hoping to get some feedback as to the pros and cons of the different account types.  If you can let me know which account you've opened up for your little, or not so little, ones and why either in the comments section or by email.  I've only got about a week left to get a contribution in for 2017...tsk tsk on me.

On to the Roundup

In case you missed them, here's the posts from Passive-Income-Pursuit over the past week.

Also, be sure to sign up to receive posts via email and to follow me on Twitter@JC_PIP so you don't miss anything.  You can also follow me on Facebook or Pinterest if you prefer those methods to get your daily fix and keep up to date on happenings around here.

Once again I'd like to say thanks to each and every one of you that read, commented, and shared posts from here this past week.  This dividend growth investing and financial independence community is amazing and the openness from everyone is awesome.  Thanks again!

Now on to the links!

Goals for 2018 by DivGro

Attractively Valued Dividend Kings by Dividend Growth Investor

Inheritance Money by Freedom 35

Don't Be A  Perlemus by Tawcan

Seeing Both Sides by A Wealth of Common Sense

Bert's December Dividend Watchlist by Dividend Diplomats

Sensationalizing Risk by Accidental FIRE

The Average Net Worth For The Above Average Married Couple by Financial Samurai

Time In The Market Expense Report - November 2017 by Time In The Market

Goals, Lessons And Mistakes in 2017 by Dividends in Hand

Human Behavior And The Panic Of 1907 by Base Hit Investing

Investing and Business Lessons from The Princess Bride by 25iq

I'd Like To Introduce You To The Johnson's by Dividends Diversify

Tax Reform & Your PFUI: Applying The 10 Heuristics by Balanced Dividends

How To Lose $9 Trillion In A Bull Market by Jason Zweig

Options Update - December 2017 by All About Interest

Options - Generating Additional Income To Bolster The Dividend Portfolio by Engineering Dividends

If you're looking for investment ideas, A Frugal Family's Journey maintains a list of stock analyses and recent buys from fellow bloggers.

I hope you all have a great weekend!  

Image courtesy of Gubgib via FreeDigitalPhotos

Comments

  1. PiP -

    Awesome picture, that's what it's all about. What a year it has been and wild that you got that much snow. Hope we are both able to end 2017 on a high note. Thank you for the mention of Bert's article!!

    -Lanny

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lanny,

      My daughter is awesome and it really is all about her. We get snow a bit more often than what I said but it's typically just flurries that can't even stick to the plants or anything. But every now and then we get some actual snow that sticks. Surprisingly enough this snow wasn't really wet either so you could actually make snowmen. It's hard to believe that 2017 is just about in the books.

      All the best.

      Delete
  2. Thanks for summarizing via the round up and additional links. Very helpful - something I'm also considering to roll-out.

    Have a good weekend as well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mike,

      No problem and I hope you get to spend the holidays with your family.

      All the best.

      Delete
  3. Both of my boys are in college now and I used the NY 529 plan. Low costs and they use Vanguard index funds. My strategy was to do the automatic monthly contributions and the compounding magic worked over time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ken,

      I've thought about the 529 plan and if I recall you can get a write off on your state income taxes, but in Texas we don't have those so the tax benefit is lost. Up front tax benefit or not I really need to figure something out because time is our biggest ally.

      All the best.

      Delete
  4. Thanks for including me in your round up JC. It's an honor to be among so many great minds.

    Lovely picture of you and your daughter. Here's wishing you and your family a wonderful Christmas. If you ever feel like more snow, consider visiting Ottawa/Gatineau...my back is still sore from shovelling 4 times this week.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DiH,

      Ha, I don't think I want any more snow. Well, I've always told my wife that while I'm working I don't want to be anywhere near snow. Once we FIRE then I have no problem being in the snow because I won't HAVE to get up to shovel it.

      All the best.

      Delete
  5. Hi JC. Merry Christmas! Thanks for including me in the Weekly Roundup.
    I've been part of the CA 529 plan for years now - first kid off to college next Fall!
    Of the college savings plan types, I believe 529s may allow for the biggest annual contribution, certainly a pro considering the amount needed to cover college expenses these days. Unfortunately the CA 529 doesn't offer any sort of state tax deduction for residents, but I figured I'd stay in the state plan at long as the fund offerings and fees are decent, just in case some benefit was added for residents in the future.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ED,

      I've started looking into 529s today and I'm thinking I'll probably just go with Vanguard's 529, I think it's Nevada. Low fee index investing has been a proven winner over time and from what I can tell there's no annual cap on 529 contributions, well the gift tax level, but that's a pretty high mark to hit.

      All the best.

      Delete

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